Why do so many people not acknowledge help 27

[johnnymac43]

When a question is asked in a technical forum, the first reply is usually a useful piece of advice or a request for more details. In some tek-tips forums, the number of occasions when there is no response from the originator is substantial. In my view, a word of thanks or a simple answer to a question should be the 'normal' outcome.

I recently raised this topic in a technical forum. When it disappeared after a short time I was unsure whether it was because it was in the wrong place, or because the thread attracted some unexpected abuse:- (What is your problem?) (What are you complaining about?) (Why haven't you given more stars to us for our good advice to others?)

After some deliberation I have decided to try this forum in the hope of getting some serious discussion going.

Cheers

John

 

[ANFPS26]

My other pet peeve is when I misspell "peeve". Sorry about that!

Jim

 

[sleipnir214]

ANFPS26:
<sarcasm>
Cool! A self-referential pet peeve. It could have been worse -- you could have posted that message to the &quot;Dictionaries and spelling&quot; thread in the &quot;My own development as a professional&quot; forum.
</sarcasm>


BakeMan:
2:1? That's selling people short.

Want the best answers? Ask the best questions:

http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

TANSTAAFL!!

 

[BakeMan]

I wasn't trying to say that this should be the only time we answer questions for each other. This should just be a &quot;rule of thumb&quot; (especially for those that never seem to answer questions for others). I also find myself too busy to spend hours answering questions for people most days, so when I do need to ask a question of my own, I think it would only be fair for me to &quot;pay forward&quot; at least two responses for the one I'm asking for (I would say more than two, but I'm trying to be realistic).

Just my two cents worth,

BAKEMAN

 

[chiph]

> Helpers who fail to sense the questioner's level of expertise, even after several exchanges, and continue to post good stuff that is not understood by the recipient.

I've been guilty of this. Sometimes the OP is a total novice, but didn't set my &quot;newbie&quot; flag off. Othertimes they're actually quite competent, but I didn't pick up on that, and end up giving them the &quot;for dummies&quot; answer. I keep trying, though.

2:1? That's selling people short.
There has been discussion before about setting a quota (like the old download quotas in the BBS days!), but everyone eventually came to the conclusion that it wasn't worth the effort, and often got in the way of some good answers. It might even promote worthless answers as people attempt to boost their ratio (via &quot;me too!&quot; posts).

I've gotten pretty good at spotting OPW (one post wonders, as GreyTed calls them). The best way to spot them is to click on their handle and see what sort of questions they've asked in the past.

Chip H.

 

[Spirit]

About OPW's, are they actually OPW's or is it just the first time they have posted?

I found TT's whilst trying to find an answer to a business critical situation.... which wasn't fun! And if someone know how to fix this click to see if I was a OPW then they might not have told me how to fix it!

Also as time has gone on - like everyone - my expertise has increased so I can explain the issue a lot more fully but we're ALL NEWBIES with every release of what ever software we used to be &quot;experts&quot; in.

I do agree that when you post an answer I would like to know if that sorted the problem or not. When I post I do it for the fun of trying to solve a problem but this is nothing compared to the glow you get when you actually do fix it!

I also post because it helps me keep my brain active and stop it from melting, running down my spin into my feet, which is a serious problem because I keep cutting my toe nails!!!!

Iain

 

[Spirit]

Another pet hate is when idiots posting don't proof read their post...

I think i meant:
And if someone know how to fix this click ***KNEW***
of what ever software we used to be &quot;experts&quot; in. ***is launched***
down my spin into my feet ***SPINE***

LOL, perhaps I should start this as a new post. Good work chaps, almost as much fun reading this as the Experience Versus Certification arguments that are Always raging!

Iain

 

[jrbarnett]

Perhaps there is a case here for a spelling checker as part of the preview routine. Many web based email systems have one, so why can't tek-tips?
The best way to cope with technical info would be to avoid anything inside code ... /code tags.

It won't pick up everything, as spellcheckers don't take account of context, but it will pick up a number of them.

John

 

[sleipnir214]

jbarnett:
Suggest it to the Tek-Tips management team.

Want the best answers? Ask the best questions:

http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

TANSTAAFL!!

 

[CajunCenturion]

With or without eubonics?

I vote without - but that would make very difficult for many of the posters to communicate.

Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[jrbarnett]

Sleipnir,

I will do that and see what they think. Meanwhile take a look at these links as reasons for non native speakers (of UK, American or other English) learning the lauguage...

http://www.badpets.net/Humor/Misc/EnglishSpelling.html

http://www.badpets.net/Humor/Tech/SpellcheckPoem.html

John

 

[EdwardMartinIII]

Jeez, everybody chips at me 'cause I'm a retard. Man, that's illin'.

In reference to the original post, I think there's simply going to be a bunch of people who come in and either cull for answers, or post to a jillion boards and take the first one that responds -- ignoring the rest. It just is.

I happen to like learning, so I stuck around. Other people do, too. That is a decision each of us has made and when I peel back the layers, the only time I feel annoyed that other people don't acknowledge that is when I'm having poor boundary control and I want some justification from them that I made a good decision.

But I know I did and that's that. I solve problems that are interesting to me and ignore the rest. The thank yous and the stars are nice and I'd be fibbing if I said I didn't get an ego-stroke out of them, but I'd rather not put the cart in front of the horse and work for them. After all, if my soul's not worth a regular paycheck, it's certainly not worth a digital star!

Cheers,


Edward

&quot;Cut a hole in the door. Hang a flap. Criminy, why didn't I think of this earlier?!&quot; -- inventor of the cat door

 

[sleipnir214]

EdwardMartinIII:
The kind of member evolution you describe is what I want to see in Tek-Tips. A newbie comes in to get answers, then sticks around to learn, then sticks around to share what he has learned. The old &quot;see one, do one, teach one&quot; methodology.

I've seen some statistics, however, from site usage. Of the 500,000+ members on record, more than half have not been to the site in more than a year. I find that a little disheartening.

Want the best answers? Ask the best questions:

http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

TANSTAAFL!!

 

[edfair]

Well, wait till they have their next problem.
And how many of the 250,000 that have been on in this year are OTPs.
I would suspect that the growth numbers are mostly a result of google hits. Or word of mouth. Nothing wrong with that, but it skews the membership rolls and brings in a bunch of help desk calls, particularly in the desktop area.

Ed Fair
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[edemiere]

edfair

What's a desktop and does one come with every computer?

Cheers!

 

[jrbarnett]

What about if the figure on the home page included the number of active posters as well as the total number of members - defined as say, the number of posters who have made at least 2 posts within the last calendar month, updated every week with the Tipmaster?

John

 

[edfair]

Unfortunate E/Ss died out on me. Envision a frown.

Ed Fair
Any advice I give is my best judgement based on my interpretation of the facts you supply. Help increase my knowledge by providing some feedback, good or bad, on any advice I have given.

 

[EdwardMartinIII]

sleipnir214: A newbie comes in to get answers, then sticks around to learn, then sticks around to share what he has learned. The old &quot;see one, do one, teach one&quot; methodology.

Each stage is a filter. 100% of the people come in. 10% come back again. 10% of those stick around longer and answer a question or two if they know the answer already. 10% of those (such as I) use it as a more dynamic brain-tool.

Of the 500,000+ members on record, more than half have not been to the site in more than a year. I find that a little disheartening.

I find that pretty much in line with what I know of human behavior and various things such as mailing lists, web hits, etc.

I have no expectations in that regard, so it's pretty much impossible for me to be disheartened.

Cheers,


Edward

&quot;Cut a hole in the door. Hang a flap. Criminy, why didn't I think of this earlier?!&quot; -- inventor of the cat door

 

[sleipnir214]

EdwardMartinIII:
Can I infer that you cannot also be cheered by reports in this regard?

Want the best answers? Ask the best questions:

http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

TANSTAAFL!!

 

[Stevehewitt]

Wow, what a thread!

I started off with networking by playing and when it broke (which was often!) I phone the constultant. That was probably over three years ago now. Now I help other people out, I like to be starred (who doesn't) and I like even more to be thanked. Its good manners and being polite. If I think the poster is just being rude then I make a mental note not the help that person again.

On the other issue of basic/easy posts:

I remember starting in IT. I was there P/T to help with the odd desktop issue. A few years later we have triple the PC's, 2 servers, Email/Web hosting and a custom access solution!

Why? Two reasons. One is the superb consultant we use, and second is down to you guys/TT.

TT has helped me out so much, I simply cannot thank you enough. I have posted some really easy ones. (E.G. How do I promote a Win2k Server to a logon server? = dcpromo)
Yeah, really easy ones - but people were always kind enough to post back and really help me out. If I see a post like that now I will do my very best to help that person. Can anyone here remember what its like being put in the deep-end; without the armbands?!

With newbies I think you/us/we should really be patient. Remember, we won't always be in IT and we won't always be members of TT - someone has got to be the next Sleipnir214 & CajunCenturion!

 

[greyted]

Stevehewitt,
Yes, this is a good thread.

Your last comment with regard to newbies is correct.

But the original question is still valid for newbies or us oldies (speaking for myself ), please or thanks is good mannered and polite.

Gosh even Ta! would suffice.







Ted

&quot;The difference between a misfortune and a calamity is this: If Gladstone fell into the Thames, it would be a misfortune. But if someone dragged him out again, that would be a calamity.&quot;
Benjamin Disraeli.